Grayson claimed that James Franklin did not actually buy
his father’s land because no money changed hands. Now, how did he know that for sure? If payment were made, did it have to occur
in front of witnesses at the signing in order for the deed to be recorded? I don’t know the answer to that. But given what I DO know, I can understand
Grayson’s point of view. The whole affair
looks fishy to me, too.

Let’s go back to 1859.
In March Fielding deeded 200 acres along Naked Creek in Page County to
James Franklin. It is assumed that the younger Jollett was going to take possession, live there, and farm the land. Maybe while he was still living at home,
things looked to be on the up and up.
However, when James Franklin married Lucy Ann Shiflett in November of
that year, they moved to Greene County.

1860 Federal census for Greene County, Virginia
James Franklin and Lucy are living between her uncle Leland Frazier
and her parents Burton and Nancy Frazier Shiflett

In 1860 and every census after that until 1910, James Franklin was in
Greene County living near his in-laws.In
1866 he was listed as a distiller, a manufacturer of spirits, on the IRS tax
assessment roll for Nortonsville, technically in Albemarle County but just one
hairy toe over the line from Greene County.He never returned to Page County.

No wonder Grayson was suspicious.

And where was Fielding?
Right where he always was:

1860 Federal census for Page County, Virginia
Fielding and Mary Ann are next to their daughter Lydia Breeden
and son John W. Jollett

farming along Naked Creek in Page County. In 1850 he claimed his real estate was worth
$100; in 1860 he said he had no land but personal property worth $3; in 1870 he
claimed real estate again worth $200. So
while claiming “no real estate” in 1860 is consistent with the deed of 1859,
assigning a value to real estate in 1870 implies he actually owned the
farm.

Of course, it’s possible James Franklin allowed Fielding
to farm the land in his absence. It’s
also possible – but not probable – that Fielding bought it back. But with all those judgments hanging over his
head, it doesn’t seem 1870 would have been a good time to take back the
farm.

1876 ruling

This court case dragged on several years. Grayson’s petition to amend the bill to
include James Franklin Jollett as a Defendant along with Fielding was granted
in 1876, five years after the original complaint.

1880 ruling

In April 1880 (!!), the case was removed from
the Court and sent to the Chancery Causes court. Other than copies of summonses and prior
judgments, there is no more in this particular folder. Did Fielding ever repay all those
creditors? Surely the outcome is
recorded SOMEWHERE.

But back to the BIG question: Did father and son conspire to commit
fraud? Had they found the loophole that
would ensure the farm remained in the family and confound the efforts of
creditors? Or was Fielding simply doing what many aging parents do by "downsizing" while he was still able? While the timing of the transfer
of ownership certainly raised a red flag, a deed was in fact recorded in Page
County. What's more, the deed preceded any of the complaints by one year, and by two years in the complaint of Benjamin Grayson. I’ve watched enough episodes of “Law
and Order” and “Matlock” to know it’s impossible to prove what was in someone’s
heart.

10 comments:

Is the farm still in the family and are there any Grayson in the area?

Most of us have ancestors that are quite ordinary, if not boring, and are only of interest to us as the descendent. Your's, however, has provided a quite engrossing tale. I've no doubt it could be used as a plot and written up into an interesting little novella with Fielding as some kind of anti-hero, or maybe, a Robin Hood character.

Hairy toes notwithstanding, I'm just amazed that Fielding's son couldn't be pursued in his own county of residence. What an uproar--and for so long!--over what started out as a $22.44 debt. I know that was a lot more money then than it is now, but the effort Grayson put into securing justice for his "cause" must have taken a lot of time. I wonder if he ever saw his loan repaid...

Hmm, so now I'm wondering if Fielding's son ever responded to those summonses sent to Green County. Do you know if they were sent to him personally or if they were sent to him publically in a newspaper?

By the way Wendy, this blog post is listed in my Fab Finds post from yesterday. Sorry I didn't let you know sooner. :)

It was an actual summons to be delivered by the sheriff. Since I don't see whether James Franklin and Fielding repaid the debt, I wonder if it's recorded elsewhere OR if the entire folder just isn't available. Page County has their chancery causes online, but maybe they didn't digitize the full contents of each folder.

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About Me

My name is Wendy. About twenty years ago, I helped my mother research the Jolletts. Since retiring from teaching, I have expanded my research which I share here. When I’m not looking for my own family, I index for FamilySearch and the Greene County Historical Society.
Welcome to Jollett Etc. Please leave a comment to let me know you were here. If you have more information or believe we are related, EMAIL ME at wendymath at cox dot net